"The Seasons (Gadalaiki) is not program music in the classical sense, but rather an expression of feelings. Vasks says, 'When I first heard Vestard Shimkus playing I instantly understood -- he is just the right interpreter. The notes turned into colors, scents, started to breathe, and The Seasons came into being.' Shimkus' performance received the Great Latvian Music Award, the highest national distinction in the field of music."